Alumni Spotlight: Jomer Tutop

WeldingJomer Tutop graduated from Summit College’s Welding program in December, 2016. Jomer attended Summit from March to December and, per his outstanding 4.0 cumulative GPA, graduated with honors.

Jomer is originally from the Philippines, eventually putting down roots in California when he came  to the United States. Before he continued his education, Jomer worked for many years as a maintenance mechanic, but his latest job was working in assembly. However, when he got laid off in February of 2016, he had a decision to make in regards to what he should do next. He was not going to let this setback affect his determination. He had a great skill set already and was an incredibly hard-worker. This is the point when Jomer decided to go back to school for welding to enhance his current skill set. He believed that welding, combined with his already vast experience as a maintenance mechanic, would provide even more opportunities.

Jomer started looking for schools near where he lived. He quickly came to realize that many private schools were too expensive. After doing further online research, he discovered Summit College and believed it to be a quality education with a more affordable price. Jomer called Summit directly and found everyone to be incredibly helpful and the process to be seamless. He discovered that they had a campus in Santa Ana that was close to him and decided that he was interested in choosing either their Welding or HVAC program. “I chose welding because I always wanted to be a welder. It was my second job back when and I just wanted to add to my skill set,” Jomer explained.

Now that Jomer has graduated, he has found a job as a welder at OEM Press Systems. This company designs and manufactures hydraulic press and automated material handling systems. The work Jomer does specifically is as a fabricator. In general, assemblers and fabricators assemble both finished products and the parts that go into them. He really enjoys the work he is doing because, as he described, “I am actually using my skills that I have developed. I like getting my hands dirty.” Jomer’s next step is to sit for the welding exam to get his LA Certification. This is something he plans to complete in the very near future. Once he sits for this test and becomes certified, it can help him obtain an even better salary and more job opportunities in welding.

When asked about his overall experience at Summit College, Jomer replied, “I feel great, I really liked it. I would love to continue on to do pipe welding. I will work first and save to go back to school or do HVAC.” He could not choose a favorite course or topic. “All of them” he stated, “Because I enjoy learning and doing welding, especially because they all pushed me to do more.”

Summit College’s Career Services also helped Jomer create a resume and make it look professional. This department aims to assist qualified students as best they can to prepare for job interviews. This really helped him in his job search and will continue to be a valuable tool after he is certified. However, one of the most memorable aspects of the welding program was Jomer’s teachers. “I really loved my instructors. They helped me a lot. Even right now one of them is still helping me out even though I am out of school.” Jomer has continued to stay in touch with his instructor even after graduation and gets replies back quickly whether it be about job opportunities, the field in general, certification questions and the like. On top of that, Jomer loved the structure. He was able to attend night classes to accommodate his schedule.

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